Regional 3/11 6:15PM Waterford vs. South Webster @ Pickrtn N

[SENDEM]

EASY KILLER, u better pipe down or ill turn pete loose on U, hahahahaha U finally said something that i could poke at U, hehehehe. I know I will see u an the Family at the game. Iam going to send u a pm so watch for it.

[bap]

I have seen both King and Cook play and they are both very good. However; last year at Pickerington at the game against Harvest Prep., Cook "cracked" under the pressure. She tried to take the game into her own hands and it did not work out for her. I expect her to do very well Thursday, but she and King will cancel each other out. As for the rest of the team, Waterford is much stronger. They will shut SW out on the defensive end and are too good on the offensive end for SW to compete with them. Cook may have a good game but King will too but Bosner, Barker, Brown, Dailey, and Drayer will be ready to drain some shots and take this game by a substantial margin.

[The Ghost of Swanker]

Jeeps just knocked off #8. Were movin on up and knockin off #7

[meow_mix]

Ill say A!! These are 2 very good teams. This game would have happened 2 yrs ago if the regional brackets hadnt been looped. Webster played Africentric 2 yr in a row. An then they played Harvest prep last yr. Waterford played Berlin Hiland 2 in a row an not sure about last if my memory is correct.

I still say it will be a BATTLE!!!

Waterford has never played Berlin Hiland. They have lost 4 straight years to Africentric and one was elite eight which was two years. Most people on here aren't even Waterford fans that you are going off on. They are Eastern fans and are supporting the TVC. You cannot assume that Cook will just come out and run over Waterford because Waterford has also played some pretty good teams and shut them down. They stuck with North Canton Hoover the whole way and pressured them into a lot of turnovers even without Emily Brown. They also shut down Leanne Ross from Marietta and if you haven't seen her play she is fast and either drives or pops up a 3 every time. Waterford also pressured Cincinnati Indian hills into a ton of turnovers who had an outstanding guard which I can't remember her name but had a ton of turnovers. Don't get me wrong SW is a great team and Cook is an outstanding player but SW fans think Waterford has never seen anything like her. Believe me they have played good enough competition this year to be ready for anything.

SW will not hang in this game at all if Waterford forces turnovers and gets the transition game going. YOU need TO run A SPeLL ChEcK EvErY ONce aNd a WhIle bUd AnD StOp CAPITALIZING EVERYTHING!!!

[ervbaseball13]

I have seen the Cook girl play twice this year and for anyone to say she will be shut down is CRAZY. She is one of the best girls basketball players I have ever seen play. Waterford has nobody that can stay with her, she is way to quick and to good of a ball handler. The only for her to be stopped if she happens to get cold shooting the ball like she did in the 2nd half against Eastern. That press might cause a few the turnovers but IMO will be scored on maybe enough to make Waterford to get out of it. Eastern put there 2 fastest girls on her with there press and couldn't stop her and one of them was the Connery girl who is faster than anyone Waterford has. Waterford has no room to talk bad about the SW fans and there Cook girl when all Waterford can talk about is King. Don't run either one of these young ladies down because without either one of them neither team would be what they are or where they are now. Both girls can play the game and will get their pts when they face off. It will depend on the supporting cast to step up in this game to give the stars a chance to shine at the end of this matchup. With that being said I think the Cook girl shines and wins it in dramatic fashion in the end. Good luck to both teams and congrats on both teams accomplishments.[/qu
Eastern had Maxson and Holter guard Cook. Connery may have helped here and there, but it was primarily Maxson's job. Eastern just couldnt properly execute a half court trap. And have you even seen Waterford play? They are a complete team. They have two main scorers but EVERYONE plays very tough defense.

I have seen Waterford play a few games since I am a TVC fan. I was at the 2 games the 3rd when SW played Eastern and Waterford played Clay. Connery had to try to help because Cook had already went around the other 2 girls. Just an outsider looking in , if the Cook girl is shutdown then she will have to do it to herself. Waterford is complete team but you might not wanna count out SW. You don't know how your team will react against that kind of player and no way can you try to simulate her in practice. This should be a classic for the fans in the stands to watch.

[jumpstop14]

This is going to be a wonderful game! I have seen Cook play a few times & the game I will never forget I believe was her sophomore year when they played Africentric. I think she was a sophomore. Their senior guard got hurt in the second half of the game & Cook showed real heart in leading her team the rest of the way. They ended up losing the game but she showed me that day that she was the real deal when it comes to girls basketball.
However, what stands out for me as the determining factor is everyone else. Can someone (not someone from SW) name a single other player on SW team? And if you do know a name do you even know what position they play? Yes, Waterford does have King & they count on her for a lot BUT I'm betting that people from outside of Waterford have heard of a few other names on this team. Waterford has always had a "star" but they have also always had other role players to go with the star. Whether it was the first regional team with the first Drayer. Then the last couple seasons they have had King but they also had another Drayer that was a 1000 point scorer & a Brown that I believe was close to 1000.
This year they have their star in King but they also have another Drayer & another Brown. My guess is these 2 will also be 1000 point scorers before their careers are done. Not to mention including King they have 6 seniors on this team who never lost a home game. I know tournaments are different than home games but you don't go undefeated at home by accident! Even really good teams lose home games at some point. I just think King's supporting cast is much better than SW & that will be the determining factor. I think if Cook can force Waterford into playing a zone defense though Waterford may be in trouble. They don't like to play zone because they tend to be less aggressive in it. They want to play you man from the tip to the last buzzer from baseline to baseline.
Good luck to both teams!

[jumpstop14]

Also SW, not to knock on Eastern because they had a wonderful season, but don't hang your hat on having beat the #8 ranked team in the state by 4 points. The #7 team beat that #8 team at their place by 20+. Just saying at Eastern it wasn't even a game.

[Steely Dan]

I saw the Cook girl play in the tournament last year and she's a nice player, very high energy who plays her butt off. That being said, she had better have a very strong supporting cast, otherwise, SW is in for a long night.

One player won't beat this Waterford team, believe me. Unless SW has a number of girls step up, handling the ball and attacking the press, Waterford will win this game going away.

[JEEP]

Webster can't handle the press of Waterford..Cook will be shut down. Sina King will go off. Waterford will win by 20+

If u have not played Cook, Then u do not know Cook.
King very good but she is no Cook.
Who's better ask ESPN they will tell you

Ask ESPN? That is stupid. Webster fans think she is the second coming of Christ. And yes, she is a Very good player, but for the last four years the team should have been called the SW Kayla Cooks for as much as you put this girl on a pedastool. There are two MAJOR differences between Sina King & Kayla Cook that Kayla's boys at ESPN prolly know. King is a post player. If you are a 6' post player, you're not going to a major program. It's amazing she's still going to the MAC. That just shows her work ethic. Cook is a guard. It's a lot easier to play D1 college basketball at 5'10" when you run point or 2 guard. Also, the reason why King hasn't blown people away with 2,000 points: she has a major supporting cast. Something that the South Webster Cooks do not have. That is why people are saying Cook will be shut down-because when you are double teamed at half court, it doesn't matter if you're Kobe Bryant, you Need teammates.

Like I said, I'm not taking away from Cooks accomplishments--she is a great player and there is no doubt about that. But YOU, the fans--have turned her into your entire team. And boy, I would hate to be one of the teammates that never gets mentioned.

[JEEP]

Also SW, not to knock on Eastern because they had a wonderful season, but don't hang your hat on having beat the #8 ranked team in the state by 4 points. The #7 team beat that #8 team at their place by 20+. Just saying at Eastern it wasn't even a game.

and 5 at waterford

[dimedrop4]

what's with all the Waterford people hating on Webster now? in my original post I stated how gracious SW was for the support Waterford has given us over the past few years...I'm beginning to think that's all gone now? I was expecting this to be a friendly matchup, but now I'm leaning towards not so much...regardless who wins this game, I don't think either team will get past Harvest Prep in the regional final... so it's just gonna be like every year we've had in the past few years...

[meow_mix]

SW fans started the whole fight by saying Waterford couldn't even be in the same gym with Kayla Cook. And the home game against Eastern was one of two absolutely horrible games Waterford has played this year, the other being at Marietta. I also want this to be a friendly match up. No reason for bickering like this after the two teams and communities have supported each other so much the past few years. Also don't count out whoever wins this because Harvest Prep is beatable. If someone can answer this for me but I do think that it was like Sina's freshman year Waterford lost to Alexander at home. Not sure if that was that year or the year before.

[The Ghost of Swanker]

Believe it or not, Kayla Cook has not been the leading scorer every game for the Jeeps. Kendra Clark outscored her one game. Don't count out Kaci Messer either, she can shoot the three ball pretty good and serves as another ball handler. Taylor Queen can shoot with the best of them too.

[soc2fan]

SW: Just take it one possession at a time, don't try to overdue it. Cook will get her shots and all you need to do is execute your offense and rebound rebound rebound, defense, defense, defense. No easy shots and if your going to foul them don't let them score and get 3 point plays. I believe you can win this ball game if you play with heart and if you play smart! GOOD LUCK LADY JEEPS!

[OaksGrad]

do they have any common opponents this year other than eastern ?
i know they scrimmaged oak hill a week before the season and sw played oak hill but thats hard to compare a scrimmage with a real game

[maizenblue]

I sure hope the Jeeps take this one. I am so tired of hearing how great Waterford is. King Maybe good but Cook is the best shooter I've seen in girls play ever. She can be mentioned in the same sentence as a Katie Smith. Do the SOC proud Jeeps and get the win.

[jumpstop14]

Seriously Katie Smith???? Are you drunk??? She is not THAT good. I don't want to take anything away from Cook she is GOOD but that good is a stretch. Like I said I have seen her play & she is impressive but I have also seen a lot of impressive players this season & over the last 12 years. Not many would I put into the Katie Smith category. Over the past several seasons I have had the pleasure of watching players that have ended up playing at UConn, Duke, Tennessee, OSU, etc. It wasn't too many years ago that Fort Frye had a girl that went to Cincinnati so Cook isn't the first player in the area to go there.
I do have to laugh though when it is mentioned that she hasn't lead them in scoring EVERY game...Clark out scored her ONCE! LOL. Cook must have had an off shooting night. Surprising since she is mentioned in the Katie Smith category.
But seriously I would rather this game be a regional final because both teams deserve to go as far as possible & unfortunately one of them has to go home without a state appearance. And I say state appearance because after seeing Hiland play I'm not sure they can be beat.
Good luck!

[Mark May]

Not agreeing or disagreeing here but wasn't Smith a post type player? Cook is a guard...So we might even be talking about two very different types of players just because of the position they played.I will say this,Cook is the quickest player I have ever seen play.I didn't see Smith,but just of the players I've seen.

[jumpstop14]

No Katie Smith is not a post player. She is a shooting guard that sometimes plays point guard & rarely small forward. She is 5' 11". Was a high school All American that played Div 1 in high school. Doubt Cook will be an All American. She broke the Big 10 scoring record for men's & women's during her college career at OSU. I highly doubt Cook will be breaking any Big East scoring records. And not that the WNBA is relevant but she has been the finals MVP & a 5 time all-star. Not to mention she was the first American female to score 5,000 professional points. So comparing her to Cook isn't fair to Cook at all. That is way to much pressure & hype that I'm sorry to say she will never live up to.
Cook is a very quick, talented, hard working, all heart player. But she is no Katie Smith.

[meow_mix]

Yeah you have obviously lost your mind if you are comparing her to Katie smith.